Todd, John, House
Why it's listed
Built of uncoursed rubble stone around 1772 on a farm in East Hanover Township, Dauphin County, the John Todd house is a five-bay Georgian dwelling with stone quoins, a side-gabled roof, and stone flat arches over its lower windows and door transom. John Todd, born in 1742, acquired the 190-acre property in 1771. The house was damaged by fire in the late 1700s and rebuilt soon after, and its interior retains early raised six-panel doors, hard pine floors, and several fireplaces, including a large walk-in kitchen fireplace. A stove plate dated 1759 was found in the dining room. The nomination regards the house as a rare surviving example of early stone dwellings built by the Scots-Irish settlers of Hanover Township, and as a well-preserved vernacular interpretation of Georgian design. Nearby, a brick summer house built during German ownership in the 1830s is also part of the property's story.
Significance in brief: The nomination argues the house is one of the few surviving stone homes of early Scots-Irish settlers in Hanover Township and a fine example of vernacular Georgian architecture. It notes that the 1798 Direct Tax shows a dozen substantial stone houses in the township at that time, most of which are now gone. The house is also tied to John Todd, a Revolutionary War veteran, and to the German owners who later added the summer house and related buildings.
Machine-generated summary. This summary was generated by a language model from the official nomination document and has not been reviewed line by line by an editor. It may contain errors. Check the source document before relying on any detail. Source: nomination document (PDF) · National Archives catalog entry. NRHP reference 88002371, listed November 3, 1988. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-haiku-5-5, prompt v1.1-2026-10-29, confidence medium).
Key facts
| Address | S. Meadow Ln., Hummelstown |
|---|---|
| County | Dauphin County |
| Listed | November 3, 1988 |
| Reference number | 88002371 |
| Resource type | District |
| Period of significance | 1771-1832 |
| Architectural style | Colonial---Georgian |
| Criteria |
|
| Areas of significance | Architecture |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Restored after a period of abandonment; the 1954 stone addition and later changes are noted, and the summer house is in use as an office. |
| Acreage | 6.5 |
| Coordinates | 40.35208, -76.67060 (NPS GIS) |
What listing means for this property
This is a historic district. Buildings within its boundary are either contributing (they add to the district's significance) or non-contributing. Owners of contributing income-producing buildings can claim the 20% federal rehabilitation tax credit; homeowners should look at state credits. National Register districts impose no design review by themselves; a local historic district ordinance, if one exists, does (the difference explained).
General information, not legal or tax advice. Rules change; confirm with your State Historic Preservation Office or a qualified adviser.
Sources and further reading
- National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places database (snapshot May 2026), reference 88002371.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q6260960
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.